l \l Ni RELIVING FALLUJAH Theatre Workshop, Edinburgh, Fri 24 & Sat 25 Feb
Here‘s a fascinating little fact: do you know which air force was the first to drop chemical weapons on a civilian town? Yes, the good old RAF, in 1920. The officer in charge? A young career flier called Harris, later Bomber Harris of Dresden infamy. And the town? Fallujah. Some things carry the most disturbing historical echoes.
Writer Stewart Marlowe is filling me in on these details by way of introducing an extract from his documentary theatre piece, Fallujan Women, which will be performed as part of an evening of awareness- raising events about the US marine assault on the Iraqi town in 2004. If this all sounds rather dry, don't be discouraged. There’s a thriller-style format to the play, which involves a journalist’s pursuit of a phantom videotape shot by a disillusioned US marine.
Nor is the play a simple anti-military statement. ‘The marines didn’t actually want to attack Fallujah,‘ Marlowe tells me. “Their commanders advised strongly against it, but there‘s evidence that the operation was ordered from the Whitehouse; it went ahead as a simple act of intimidation, a demonstration of power. What we might be concerned about in the West is the way that governments are using their power to these ends for political purposes, and going unchecked by people who know the situation better,‘ he says. The piece sits at the centre of a day of events, including photographic exhibitions, talks by witnesses to the events at Fallujah, and a presentation by a number of organisations, including Amnesty International and Medicine Sans Frontiere. (Steve Cramer)
Reviews
NE ,',('ll~7.>\
HOW TO KILL/KISS (YOUR LOVER)
Paisley Arts Centre, Wed Feb 22, then touring. Seen at Traverse Theatre. Edinburgh, Oct 00.
l)zfllit:l)‘\ tt‘i- llliul‘flki.‘ ilri ,tm-r' .'.t‘
mitt'rint i" "‘riti:rrir;iirar‘, gown,
{rt?.'li"(l, i; I-I'rlll\’ f)‘.",‘l?l, ‘f.('ri Ii.“‘\lf)\‘\i'
""l.itl‘i}l,i .~...’, __'.r: . l'|<“‘i) ) A .1,".»()LA?:' 'lltir‘iltil"
'lli‘,’ relationships; Brit i‘; tnif; hig; lti‘ills,‘ f;-’)lllé}ll‘lll{l _.r1<:oniie ited to the ~“.l:r‘,(lgi, lirtani ial and in iiitiral rnei:hariir,t. of siir‘iimil: It .‘.’<llll(l seerii not.
lhegilre Ulllttklly. [ ii Morison", engaging and lll:t?‘.‘.?lt:l?llllt] little ~’,(‘llll)£t'l‘,, present this; ileviseil allegory about the (litfirgiilties or relationships; and the pm'hlerhs o’ eoinniiiniiations, and igonf‘iitino needs ‘.'.'thin Illt:."l in it. two performers enact. .‘rith an emphasis on f;iit{)f$llt‘r\ anzl l)ll‘,fil’j£tl sMrsatron. the riieetinii, iriaiiiteriariige and tensions of a reiatioriship. not rieiessaril; in that order. But pressures from outside also irririirige on their happiness.
This is a illi)‘.‘.‘ burner, and ‘,()LJ riiiiiht spend the first to riiintites ‘.‘i.’()lltl(rflllt} .‘xlii, not. are there. but it ‘.'.arrns iip zen; lll(i(}l‘, as things pro(,eed. In front of the simplest set. llldllil‘, constriirted of (:ardhoard hows. the pleasing; ESIllllHIt/illy of the l)ll‘,t$|<;éll terghniiiiie :;5o‘.'.'lg, '()\.t;‘(tlfé more complex 'notixatii >ns arioiit sexually. eriiotiori
anil the polities there»? \i’er, iiiiirgh a
’ Ii ASSN, iii/Kt it {2i
ROMEO AND JULIET
Theatre
it c A A ti \ W 'xc It ’ t f \4 ‘\1I’ '\ \ '\’ \. o O ‘ ' \\ D Q \ l (.
mime LIVES Theatre Royal, Glasgow. until Sat 4
Feb 0.. '° i' :;. i' i ’ .i t » t"‘tt\..'.'lt' .‘i‘i.’ H t t . l’i} 32‘ '1‘! i”‘t ' 1'}. » ta ta \l‘t t .it ‘ 3.” the «t ' r'tar‘. t,‘ >". :‘t'i .r’ i"t’f§ " t attire an tertorie ti its rru-it.. tr.
‘) til.)tif,‘dt‘l Q“ . i. \"_
t t‘e “to i.‘ thi- .r,"‘.ii 2-1.1’litt T'.t'lt;;iwit their: are :ni‘i "'UL‘JI‘K‘H'
\.'i?lilt" itl‘ T’il' Hm; ‘vf't‘T'H’
‘lltF‘H‘i
‘wi nu. .'.yr.itx, .‘..:;e tiger. M"
Eli“! .Jiiuan ‘.‘..ii:t‘.2rr‘i and f\'ll,tl‘ilit Belinda i tilltli i'Tt?‘.llitlll, iiieet. Tt‘.tlli\r' their ~.i- nexer iett, ittiriip their ierioiir‘d spouses and riin a.'.a. tr‘ iia. Ptt'lt‘i HHH' tilt), ilmi it"! Illi' “‘it‘xl‘ll‘~ The, itiniiri (,‘ll rraxe nth iii li'll‘ either .1th il‘rtf ni-eri‘miu, \"ixfa'". M143“ '
[A i )f ,irlitti lilifm i‘i ,i .‘l‘ 'l“ i.ii H} U,
sinoiitinti iiiati:hi,-s and 'thiiitinli iii ‘.'.t'l garnet;
V()‘,t:tlllt$llli ar:<: was; to the [ill‘u'tlft lives of these people would he (iiiite the scandal in Coward's tiine. hiit ni,.-.« mth the antics of the Big Brother house so fresh in our ininrts. it rna, not earn, the same power mth ,roiinr; aiidieiir;es. ()iiite whether the fill of Coward's dialogue still holds. llli is. a rnoot point. Eddie Thornton.
Citizens' Theatre, Glasgow, in repertory until Sat 4 Mar 000.
There's only so intreh that can he done with one piece of .‘rritirig before it's disiii ssed L rtd filed tinder the dreaded headir’ig ‘dune to death. So hos; then does Sliakesr;i;ai'e's work continue :ts reixerition?‘ Is it easy. or Just aceessihle? The answer appears to be neither; it plays UBCUUESJ we want it to; there's no
greater trihiite
We stul chart the course of two star—crossed lowers iLorna Craig and lain Robertson. here in C(JlllfflltpOréi‘, Giasgow. There's the same classic story. .riterspe'seii with chans. and not a little Grass/egian nanter.
At first glance this piece ma, appear to be a little too .‘rest of the centre for soiiie. Sizatheo Il‘i Giasgov.’ accents. director Gregory Thoriipson's l‘liXMJll‘ sation corio riir: the risk of alienating an,one who originates, further afield than Paisley. Biit adriiirapie COHTC tiinirig and a undeniable emotional depth se «s :lire<:tor and actors Creating a t'iiriipn, perhaps introducing Shakespeare to an 5:. en slider ati’dlUlCC. Craig} and RobertSOn siip etiomessl; into their parts. with the latter portrapng the destroyed ,oong lover With crushing honesty. Jirnni/ Chisho‘iii and Cara Kelli, take on the:r respective roles as Capiilet spearheads .'.l'_l‘, ‘.’l§}‘_’)'_ii' and Keil,"s epilogue is both sincere and delicate. On an aptly riioderh
set Gtiseppe Di LUHO, the actors pia
,' Out the fated lovers' stow well. affOrdirig it
both the fragility and relentless passion it desenes. It's both refreshing and poignant to see a stow, so removed from its origins. prowrig once again that a good story‘s a good story, ‘done to death“ or not. (Julia Morgan)
"c Feb—2 Mar 200") THE LIST 85